Friday

The amount of cash generated by sequels is enough to make Donald Trump gasp.

According to Box Office Mojo, the year's top-grossing titles in the U.S. and Canada were the sequels:

1. "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2" ($381 million)

2. "Transformers: Dark of the Moon" ($352 million)

3. "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn-Part 1" ($267.6 million)

4. "The Hangover: Part II" ($254.4 million)

5. "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" ($241 million)

6. "Fast Five" ($209.8 million)

7. "Cars 2" ($191.4 million)

Don't forget: These are just domestic-gross figures.

The totals from global markets potentially make these pictures wildly profitable. (The final "Potter" installment, for example, grossed $947.1 million overseas, giving the film a total worldwide gross of more than $1 billion.)

And such hits make the jobs of studio chiefs somewhat easier. They negotiate to make more installments — "The Twilight Saga" title arrives next November and a sequel to "Fast Five" and two more in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" series seem almost certain — and then start counting the haul at the box office.

Other titles in the top 25 for 2011 are:

8. "Thor" ($181 million)

9. "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" (a prequel; $176.7 million)

10. "Captain America: The First Avenger" (first title in a new franchise; $176.6 million)

11. "The Help" ($169.3 million)

12. "Bridesmaids" ($169.1 million)

13. "Kung Fu Panda" (another sequel; $165.2 million)

14. "X-Men: First Class" (a franchise title; $146.4 million)

15. "Rio" ($143.6 million)

16. "Puss in Boots" (a "Shrek" spinoff; $142.9 million)

17. "The Smurfs" ($142.6 million)

18. "Super 8" ($127 million)

19. "Rango" ($123.2 million)

20. "Horrible Bosses" ($117.5 million)

21. "Green Lantern" ($116 million)

22. "Hop" ($108 million)

23. "Paranormal Activity 3" ($103.8 million)

24. "Just Go With It" ($103 million)

25. "Bad Teacher" ($100 million)

The list provides some interesting twists.

For example, "The Help" may not be at the top of the list, but the outstanding drama cost just $25 million to make and returned more than $169 million, creating a huge profit.

International audiences can't seem to get enough of Johnny Depp and the "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise. "On Stranger Tides," which cost $250 million to make, grossed $802 million overseas, which tops the $1 billion mark when added to the domestic return.

People in every part of the world seem ready to laugh at their supervisors. The modestly mounted "Horrible Bosses," starring Jennifer Aniston and Jason Bateman, enjoyed a $209 million worldwide total, making it hugely profitable.

And things may follow a similar pattern in the top-grossing list for 2012.

The most highly anticipated titles include "The Dark Knight Rises," "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey," "The Amazing Spider-Man," "American Pie 4" and "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn-Part 2," all arriving next summer.

They'll be joined by "The Avengers," which consists of numerous superheroes, including Captain America, Iron Man, the Hulk and Thor, from previous Marvel Comic installments.

Stay tuned for more.

CORRECTION

My review of "The Adventures of Tintin" had a wrong figure for the number of copies that Georges Remi's book has sold.

The worldwide total is more than 350 million copies.

Lou Gaul: 609-871-8055; email, lgaul@phillyBurbs.com

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